It was slippery; in fact, the roof was much harder to walk on than Bobby had suspected.  For one thing, the roof sloped, and he had to cling to the side of the house as he walked; then, too, the fine driving snow almost blinded him; and a third reason that made it hard going was the way the snow caked and clung to his shoes.

He had reached the window where Meg was waiting, so interested in watching him that she had forgotten why he was coming, and he stooped for a handful of fresh snow.  Meg grinned cheerfully at him as he straightened up.

“I’ll let you in,” she called through the glass, beginning to push up the window.

Bobby reached out to get a good grip on the window frame, missed the ledge and lost his balance.  His foot slipped as he threw out his arms to save himself.

CHAPTER II

BOBBY IS RESCUED

Before the frightened gaze of three pairs of eyes Bobby slid backward over the edge of the porch roof, out of sight.

“He’ll be killed!” sobbed Meg, dashing for the door.

She unlocked it and fled down the hall, followed by Dot and Twaddles.

“What is it?  What is it?” screamed Norah, as she caught a glimpse of Meg’s white face from the dining-room where she was beginning to set the supper table.  “Has anything happened to any of ye?”

Meg was already out of the front door.  Norah caught up her red shawl and ran after her.

Norah had lived with the Blossoms ever since Bobby was a baby.  He was now seven years old.  There were four little Blossoms now, and never a dispute about the “baby of the family,” for there were two of them!  Dot and Twaddles were twins, you see.  They were four years old, but liked to be considered older, as many of the younger children do.

If you have read the first book of this series, called “Four Little Blossoms at Brookside Farm,” you already know many of their friends, and above all their Aunt Polly Hayward, who was their mother’s older sister.  Brookside Farm was Aunt Polly’s home, and the four children spent a beautiful summer there with her and learned about farm life and were given a calf, “Carlotta,” for their very own.  This first book, too, explains about the real names of the four little Blossoms.  Bobby was Robert Hayward Blossom, Meg’s right name Margaret Alice, like her mother’s, and Dot’s, Dorothy Anna.  Twaddles had a very nice name, too, Arthur Gifford Blossom, and no one ever knew why he was called Twaddles.  It seemed to suit him, somehow.